WBEZ | U.S. Census Bureauhttp://www.wbez.org/tags/us-census-bureau
Latest from WBEZ Chicago Public Radioen3,000 fewer students enroll in Chicago Public Schoolshttp://www.wbez.org/news/3000-fewer-students-enroll-chicago-public-schools-110869
<img typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://llnw.wbez.org/main-images/student-enrollment-130923-LL.png" alt="" /><p><p>For the first time since at least 1970, Chicago Public Schools will serve fewer than 400,000 students.</p><p>District spokesman Bill McCaffrey confirmed that there are at least 3,000 fewer students in the public school system. The decline keeps Chicago just ahead of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, which <a href="http://www.dadeschools.net/StudentEnroll/Calendars/enroll_stats_aor.asp" target="_blank">enrolls roughly 380,000 students</a>, including pre-K students, vocational students and those in charter schools.&nbsp;</p><p>CPS took its official head count on Monday, the 20th day of school. The past two years, the district has counted on the 10th day as well, in order to adjust school budgets to account for the difference between enrollment projections and how many students actually show up. For the second year in a row, schools that didn&rsquo;t meet their enrollment targets were <a href="http://www.wbez.org/news/chicago-public-schools-will-get-money-no-show-students-again-110861">held harmless</a> and got to keep the money budgeted to them over the summer.</p><p>Enrollment in CPS had been steadily declining for the last decade, but remained relatively flat from 2008 to 2012. In the last two years, since CPS closed 50 district-run schools, the system lost about 6,000 students.</p><p>At the same time the district&rsquo;s been losing students, CPS has opened more than 140 new schools, most of them privately run charter schools. Officials did close schools at the same time, but the openings outpaced the closings.&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-size:20px;"><strong>Enrollment over time in Chicago Public Schools</strong></span></p>
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<table class="tableizer-table"><tbody><tr class="tableizer-firstrow"><th>School Year</th><th># of students in CPS charter or contract schools</th><th># of students in traditional CPS schools</th><th>Total CPS enrollment</th></tr><tr><td>1999-2000</td><td>5,535</td><td>426,215</td><td>431,750</td></tr><tr><td>2000-2001</td><td>6,733</td><td>428,737</td><td>435,470</td></tr><tr><td>2001-2002</td><td>6,084</td><td>431,534</td><td>437,618</td></tr><tr><td>2002-2003</td><td>8,844</td><td>429,745</td><td>438,589</td></tr><tr><td>2003-2004</td><td>10,493</td><td>423,926</td><td>434,419</td></tr><tr><td>2004-2005</td><td>12,274</td><td>414,538</td><td>426,812</td></tr><tr><td>2005-2006</td><td>15,416</td><td>405,509</td><td>420,925</td></tr><tr><td>2006-2007</td><td>19,043</td><td>394,651</td><td>413,694</td></tr><tr><td>2007-2008</td><td>23,733</td><td>384,868</td><td>408,601</td></tr><tr><td>2008-2009</td><td>32,016</td><td>376,028</td><td>408,044</td></tr><tr><td>2009-2010</td><td>36,699</td><td>372,580</td><td>409,279</td></tr><tr><td>2010-2011</td><td>42,801</td><td>359,880</td><td>402,681</td></tr><tr><td>2011-2012</td><td>48,389</td><td>355,762</td><td>404,151</td></tr><tr><td>2012-2013</td><td>52,926</td><td>350,535</td><td>403,461</td></tr><tr><td>2013-2014</td><td>57,169</td><td>343,376</td><td>400,545</td></tr><tr><td>2014-2015 (projected)</td><td>60,982</td><td>339,463</td><td>400,445</td></tr><tr><td>2014-2015 (10th day)</td><td>n/a</td><td>309,182*</td><td>397,000**</td></tr></tbody></table><p><em>*Does not include Pre-K, charter and contract schools or alternative schools.</em></p><p><em>**Preliminary estimate based on confirmed decline of at least 3,000 students.</em></p><p>Wendy Katten, executive director of the city-wide parent group Raise Your Hand, said the decline is really sad, but not that surprising.</p><p>&ldquo;We hear a lot from parents about the instability of the policies of the district,&rdquo; Katten said &ldquo;The constant school actions, the opening and closing of schools, and the budget cuts. I think a lot of parents are looking for more stability in their children&rsquo;s schooling.&rdquo;</p><p>Michael Casserly, the executive director of the Council of Great City Schools, said enrollment in urban districts can take a hit when there&rsquo;s a lot of turmoil. In CPS&rsquo;s case, that included the first teachers&rsquo; strike in 25 years and the mass closure of 50 public schools.</p><p>&ldquo;But in situations like that you&rsquo;ll often find that enrollment bounces back,&rdquo; Casserly told WBEZ. He said the council recently surveyed public school parents in urban districts and found that more than 80 percent are satisfied with the schools.</p><p>Casserly also noted that declines are directly related to population declines. Indeed, Chicago has lost school-aged children in the last few decades. But the percentage of those children being educated by CPS has increased.</p><p><span style="font-size:20px;"><strong>Census Figures vs. CPS &nbsp;Enrollment</strong></span></p>
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<table class="tableizer-table"><tbody><tr class="tableizer-firstrow"><th>&nbsp;</th><th>1970</th><th>1980</th><th>1990</th><th>2000</th><th>2010</th></tr><tr><td>Total CPS enrollment (includes Pre-K)</td><td>577,679</td><td>477,339</td><td>408,442</td><td>431,750</td><td>409,279</td></tr><tr><td># of schools in CPS</td><td>&ldquo;more than 550&rdquo;</td><td>n/a</td><td>560</td><td>597</td><td>674</td></tr><tr><td>U.S. Census Bureau population totals for City of Chicago, Ages 5-19</td><td>904,731</td><td>731,103</td><td>592,616</td><td>625,776</td><td>513,476</td></tr><tr><td>U.S. Census Bureau population totals for City of Chicago, Ages 0-19</td><td>1,187,832</td><td>963,125</td><td>809,484</td><td>844,298</td><td>699,363</td></tr><tr><td>Percent of Chicago&#39;s school-aged (5-19) kids in Chicago Public Schools</td><td>63.90%</td><td>65.30%</td><td>68.90%</td><td>69.00%</td><td>79.70%</td></tr><tr><td>Percent of Chicago&#39;s 0-19 kids in Chicago Public Schools</td><td>48.60%</td><td>49.60%</td><td>50.50%</td><td>51.10%</td><td>58.50%</td></tr></tbody></table><p><em>Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Chicago Public Schools, Illinois State Board of Education, Chicago Tribune (for the 1970 number of CPS students).</em></p><p>In the district&rsquo;s 10-year Master Facilities Plan, CPS commissioned Educational Demographics and Planning, Inc. to calculate enrollment projections for the next ten years. The plan estimates a 1 percent increase in the number of school-aged children in Chicago.</p><p>CPS&rsquo;s McCaffrey said until the preliminary 20th day enrollment numbers are vetted, the district is unable to speculate why the schools lost children. More detailed numbers will be out in the coming days and that will help CPS understand what areas of the city are losing the most kids and what grade levels see the biggest drops.</p><p>Andrew Broy, executive director of the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, said he expects an increase in the number of children in charter schools. CPS opened four new charter schools this year and is adding grades at a number of existing campuses.</p><p>Broy did admit that some charter schools are struggling to fill open seats.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re seeing more places, on the West Side and parts of the South Side, where charter school&nbsp; enrollment numbers haven&rsquo;t kept up with the campuses being added,&rdquo; Broy said Monday, noting that one-third of all charter schools currently have room for more students.</p><p>But Broy said charters are also the reason many families have chosen to stay in the city.</p><p>&ldquo;I would argue that if we did not have charter schools over the past 10 years we would see a much higher out-migration pattern in Chicago,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>CPS needs to confront the fact that its enrollment is declining, Broy said, but he also said the district needs to continue adding high-quality options for parents.</p><p>Katten, with the parent group Raise Your Hand, said CPS officials should stop opening new schools and focus on ones they have.</p><p>&ldquo;There should probably be a moratorium on opening new schools of any kind,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Parents want a commitment, whether they&rsquo;re in charter schools or district schools, that those existing schools are getting attention.&rdquo;</p><p><em>Linda Lutton contributed to this story.&nbsp;</em></p><p>B<em>ecky Vevea is a producer and reporter for WBEZ. Follow her </em><a href="http://twitter.com/WBEZeducation">@WBEZeducation</a>.</p></p>Mon, 29 Sep 2014 21:00:00 -0500http://www.wbez.org/news/3000-fewer-students-enroll-chicago-public-schools-110869A trip on the Metra Rock Island reveals vast emptiness on the South Sidehttp://www.wbez.org/blog/lee-bey/2011-03-29/trip-metra-rock-island-reveals-vast-emptiness-south-side-84407
<img typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://llnw.wbez.org/blog/photo/2011-March/2011-03-29/untitled shoot-022.jpg" alt="" /><p><p><img alt="" src="http://www.wbez.org/sites/default/files/blog/insert-image/2011-March/2011-03-29/untitled%20shoot-022.jpg" style="width: 599px; height: 330px;" title=""></p><p>Travel through some parts of the South Side these days. The emptiness is startling.</p><p>The void is particularly noticeable along the Metra Rock Island line. I&nbsp;take this line daily between downtown and my house. The ride begins at LaSalle Street station at Congress at LaSalle, where tall buildings peer down on the train platform and ends 20 minutes later in the Beverly neighborhood. In between--largely between Gresham station at 87th and the Illinois Institute of Technology campus at 35th--there is a breathtaking void.&nbsp;</p><p>And not just vacant lots. That's <em>so</em> 1980s. These days, there are entire sections of neighborhoods, ripped up, grassed-over and gone. The now-demolished Robert Taylor and Stateway Gardens housing projects occupied two miles of this space and new housing has been slow to reemerge there. The 2010 demolition of Kennedy King College at 69th and Wentworth left a crater in the city grid (see the photo above) two-and-half blocks wide and three blocks deep. In other areas along the ride, bits and pieces of neighborhoods just ebbed away...</p><p><img alt="" src="http://llnw.wbez.org/blog/insert-image/2011-March/2011-03-29/untitled shoot-032.jpg" title="" width="507" height="380"></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img alt="" src="http://www.wbez.org/sites/default/files/blog/insert-image/2011-March/2011-03-29/untitled%20shoot-038.jpg" style="width: 640px; height: 298px;" title=""></p><p>The much-discussed 2010 U.S. Census disclosed the city lost 200,000 people over the past decade. That's like the entire population of Little Rock AR, or Des Moines IA just packing up and leaving.&nbsp;The view from the ground not only shows what some of that loss looks like; it underscores the need for something to be done about it as well.</p></p>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 12:05:00 -0500http://www.wbez.org/blog/lee-bey/2011-03-29/trip-metra-rock-island-reveals-vast-emptiness-south-side-84407Top cop: Chicago won’t redraw beat maps anytime soonhttp://www.wbez.org/story/beat-realignment/top-cop-chicago-won%E2%80%99t-redraw-beat-maps-anytime-soon
<img typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://llnw.wbez.org/Jody_Weis_by_Getty.jpg" alt="" /><p><p>Chicago may not have enough cops in its highest-crime neighborhoods, but police Supt. Jody Weis says the city won&rsquo;t redraw patrol maps anytime soon.<br /><br />Realigning the city&rsquo;s 285 beats would shift officers and cars to where they&rsquo;re needed most, an idea popular with some aldermen on the city&rsquo;s South and West sides. Weis himself had been talking it up for two years.<br /><br />But aldermen in low-crime areas voiced fears that they would lose protection. And the Fraternal Order of Police said its contract constrained where the city could assign officers.<br /><br />Now Weis is talking about a different approach. At a Chicago Police Board meeting last Thursday, the superintendent said the city would not redraw beat maps, at least for now. &ldquo;We certainly don&rsquo;t intend to do that until the wards have been redrawn,&rdquo; Weis said, according to the meeting <a href="http://www.wbez.org/sites/default/files/Chicago_Police_Board_public_meeting_20110217.pdf">transcript</a>.<br /><br />What do political boundaries have to do with policing? WBEZ on Tuesday asked Weis spokeswoman Lt. Maureen Biggane, but she didn&rsquo;t answer.<br /><br />The police department, meanwhile, is sticking close to the status quo. In a written statement, Biggane said that includes sending mobile units to high-crime areas &mdash; an approach she calls less costly than realigning the beats.<br /><br />&ldquo;None of these methods entail realigning districts or beats,&rdquo; Biggane wrote. &ldquo;However, the process is continual and fluid. Additional data, including recent Census Bureau figures, will be taken into account as the process moves forward.&rdquo;</p></p>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 21:36:00 -0600http://www.wbez.org/story/beat-realignment/top-cop-chicago-won%E2%80%99t-redraw-beat-maps-anytime-soon